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Tolerance to meth

Is tolerance different than addiction?

Yes.

Drug addiction is the compulsive use of a substance, despite its negative or dangerous effects. Although tolerance and addiction can co-occur they are very different conditions, requiring different approaches to correct.

In this article, we take a close look at what meth tolerance is, how long it takes to develop tolerance and if you can lower tolerance, or not. Then, we invite questions about meth tolerance, what is the process of meth withdrawal like, or helping meth addiction (which we answer) at the end of this article.

Is your body meth-tolerant?

Do you take meth (methamphetamine) medicinally as the brand drug Methedrine, or use it recreationally to get high? Have you noticed you are taking more meth in order for it to work? If so, you may have developed a tolerance to meth. Does this mean you need to worry about meth addiction?… and how is increased tolerance to meth different than meth dependence or addiction?

Developing tolerance to meth

If you take meth daily as either a prescription treatment or to get high, it is expected that your body may build up a both physical dependence on methamphetamine or tolerance to the drug. This means that you have to up your doses or take meth more often in order to feel any effects. It is hard to accurately measure if a person develops a tolerance to meth or if meth triggers a physical dependence to higher levels of dopamine in the body. But how do you know if you’re developing tolerance to meth effects or becoming physically dependent on meth, or not?

Meth Tolerance Symptoms

Tolerance is characterized by a need for a larger dose of a medication to maintain the original effect. Drug tolerance can involve both psychological drug tolerance and physiological factors. There are two common meth tolerance symptoms that can indicate a developed tolerance to meth. Meth tolerance is defined by by either or all of the following:

1. A need for increased amounts of meth to achieve intoxication or the desired effect. You have to increase doses amount or frequency in order to maintain effective craving management and pain relief.

2. Diminished effect on the user with continued use of the same amount of meth. In other words, when you take the prescribed amount of meth, no therapeutic effects occur. Likewise, if you are taking meth recreationally, increased tolerance would manifest as no euphoric effect.

If you are finding that these meth tolerance symptoms apply to you, this doesn’t necessarily mean you are addicted to meth. Instead, these are only indicators that the effects of meth no longer work for you. While tolerance, dependence, and addiction can be present simultaneously, each condition is a separate and different entity. However, research suggests that methamphetamine is the most addictive drug in today’s market and any indication of tolerance or dependence is best brought to the attention of a medical professional as soon as possible.

Meth tolerance: How long?

How strongly an individual feels the effects of meth, and how long they last, depend on several factors: the individual physical and psychological characteristics, the user’s environment, how the drug is taken (whether swallowed, snorted, smoked or injected), the quality and purity of the drug, and the combined effects of any other drug the user has taken.

Meth tolerance is different for everyone. But, because of the potency of this psychostimulant and the relatively short time it remains in the system, you can develop a tolerance to meth within a few uses. If you are using meth recreationally, the pathway to tolerance may be significantly shorter, within hours. If your meth tolerance continues to increase or if you already have a high tolerance to meth, you may want to seek assistance from a medical professional.

High tolerance to meth

Medicinally, methamphetamine is used in the treatment of narcolepsy, attention deficit disorder (ADD), and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Typical doses are 10 mg/day or up to 40 mg daily and a course of greater than six weeks is not recommended. If you are exceeding this dose per day under prescription, you have a high tolerance to meth. But keep in mind that at times, doctors may prescribe higher doses than normally considered. Therefore, these numbers are a rough estimate for high tolerance.

How to lower tolerance to meth

You can lower your tolerance to meth but it is important to note that you cannot lower tolerance to your original base level. In other words, there will always be a level of maintained tolerance as long as you are taking meth. If you want to lower your tolerance, the best way to do so is to seek a doctor’s supervision.

Additionally, some people may have a naturally high tolerance to meth because they have naturally high levels of dopamine occurring in the body and have a more difficult time lowering their tolerance to the medication. This can be difficult because when you stop taking meth or lower your does the presence of the symptoms it was treating may arise. Or withdrawal from meth can occur. Keep a line of open communication with your doctor during times when you want to make meth more effective. MDs can help you figure out the best possible situation for your cravings and pain and examine possible alternatives.

Quitting illicit meth or Metherdrine medication (the pharmaceutical form of methamphetamine hydrochloride) can be made easier if you are prepared for what to expect and equipped with the right information about what meth addiction is, how you can find the best addiction treatment program for you, and the rehab process entail. Learn more in this Methedrine Addiction Treatment Programs and Help guide.

Building up tolerance to meth questions

Risk of addiction during meth use is high and it is important to be vigilant. Tolerance means that your body has adapted to the presence of medication and does not react to its chemical cues. That can render meth ineffective or lower its therapeutic effects.

Hi,
I used to take meth recreationally and now stopped. I haven’t used it too often (at the most it was used once in a week or 3 times a week).
I definitely know that I developed high tolerance to meth because I started taking it in bigger doses (injecting). And also it didn’t give the same effect.
Since I decided to quit meth and I’m now in recovery (willingly), I wanted to know if I could lose that tolerance completely or how can I figure the time when the tolerance is no longer exist?
Could it happen after 6 months, 1 year? Longer than that?

Hi Steve. Tolerance starts to drop when use is discontinued. It happens gradually, but with a different pace in different individuals. So, after being clean for a longer period of time, a person will require the amount of first-time meth user to feel the wanted effects. Lowered tolerance is one of the reasons why people overdose once they have been sober for a while – they go back to use the amount of the drug they used to take when their addiction (and tolerance levels) were at a peak.

X

6:11 pm March 20th, 2016

Assuming this article is about other amphetamines as well such as those prescribed by doctors like Adderall, Vyvanse, ect for ADHD. While they are very similar meth is not prescribed, at least not these days. Methamphetamine is chemically different than those and it is misleading to refer to all amphetamines as meth.

crystal

10:20 pm July 31st, 2016

i have injected about 2 yrs but not very often. im happy with injecting just once a day and it doesnt have to be everyday…i can go weeks without it. Normally I’d do around 40-45cc. But the past 2 months I havent wanted to do that much. So i dropped it to 25cc. Ive done this 4 times in the past 2 months. Everytime I have done this I immediately vomit. This has never happened before. I will vomit for hours after the one tiny shot. Why is this do u think?

Lydia @ Addiction Blog

12:52 pm August 10th, 2016

Hi Crystal. It seems to me that vomiting is a side effect of injecting meth due to low tolerance.

Loretta

2:06 pm September 18th, 2016

I know of a young man who is on a meth program, supposedly. He gets a vial a day,, is this usual?

Kayla

3:26 pm November 25th, 2016

I have been injecting crystal for the past 2 years and have maintained a good diet and life. Recently my health has plummeted.i get alot of uti/kidney infections. Recently i smoked crack after doing crystal rapid head rush almost made me pass out.rapid heartbeat as well. Why is this? Is my stuff cut with something thats causing these effects? Or is this normal

Hey…I’m pretty new to injecting meth. I’m a healthy older guy with life issues in reasonable control e.g. no abuse history or traumas. I love the rush from injecting (and the heightened libido) but I’m concerned about addiction and I’m wondering if a person can keep usage to once a month Without letting it grab hold of you. Anyone out there know of people who succeed managing its use?

Blubrat

1:42 pm May 17th, 2017

I’ve been an off and on crystal for about 3 years now, periods of time my use was more frequent and on a daily bases…but I noticed that when I went two to three weeks without use before using again the high has been wonderful and long lasting every time dispite the quality, nor have I had to do more each time to get the same high. It’s a great party drug, as long as you’re not trying to party every day.

Louis

1:24 pm August 29th, 2017

My name is Louis i am from Hawkes Bay , New zealand i have smoked meth for the past 4 years started off smoking quarter of a gram a week then spent 2 years smoking a gram a day then this past year cut down to anywhere from a half a gram to a quarter of a gram a week i started undergoing tests 5 months ago as a friends dad is sick and down to 4 % kidney function so i volunteered to donate a kidney to him i passed all the tests with flying colours but was open about my meth use and was accepted for surgery and passed all there criteria except my meth habbit i told my renal doctor i would quit 1 month before pre op so i was told my pre op would be end of july and i stopped smoking at the start end of july i recieved a letter saying i needed to be clean for 6 months before they would accept me for surgery i am now 7 weeks clean i have done this on my own with no help cold turkey but my issue is i need paperwork and random drug testing to prove i have been clean for 6 months to donate my kidney so im curious what you recommend as ive been to our local district health board and they wont accept me for narcotics councilling or drug and alcahol councilling cause im not moderate to high risk and no using anymore , and ive also been to our local addiction health centre and asked for help via councilling signed all the paperwork concented to random drug testing and a house search yet that was 3 weeks ago and they havnt rung me or contacted me to say i was accepted i went in a 2nd time and they turned me away everyone says there is help out there but so far it has been will power and my mother supporting me thats it ive had to cut ties with all my friends to void temptation ive left everything i know behind and asked for help and there is none. now ive been clean for a while i still barely can sleep i get 2 hours sleep wake up sweating have a shower change my sheets repeat and in the morning i cant function because im tired and irritable i get angry at things that never use to bother me and its not just angry its like i have to remove myself from what ever situation and go smoke a cigarette away from people i cant work because i have some mystery issue with my wrist that cant be fixed by pain killers , pretnizone , xrays , blood tests. im at a loss am i suppose to keep going it alone does it get easier if i do survive the 6 months and am cleared to go through with surgery and i start meth again my kidney wont handle it with just 1. any advice would be greatly appreciated.god i miss the sex thow meth is a hell of a drug . have to say every1 says it ruins lives and ruins people but i see it like a test the person you are when you start taking it and the person you become when your on it and the person you end up as when you give it up it molds u and shows you the darker side of life but if you were a good person when you went into it and you come out of it a good person then you passed the test.

Jeff

8:39 pm December 5th, 2017

My name jeff and I Have Been addicted to meth for years pleas e how t o stop be ing addicted I cant tak it an mor hold on there gringo

Lydia @ Addiction Blog

6:13 pm December 7th, 2017

Hi Jeff. Call the helpline you see on the website to get in touch with a trusted treatment consultant who can help you find the best rehab program for you.

Brandon

8:16 am December 8th, 2017

I have used crystal methamphetamine in the past primarily late 90s early 2000 started to experiment with drugs and ultimately I chose opiates or opium and got what I can only describe as a very strong lifelong addiction for opiates. Then the tightening of restrictions on opiates do to the opiate crisis that has gripped America right now. slowly but slowly sources dried up connections disappeared ultimately slowing and stopping me from getting or acquiring them. Now that I’m looking back on it I’m glad the US government did tighten sanctions on opiates cuz I don’t want any man woman or child to feel the emptiness that has been left from the absence of opiates a dark hole seeping in my chest never to be filled is very difficult to explain or even to put into words. They say never to replace a drug with a nother drug. I don’t know if that’s possible when it comes to years of opiate abuse. I didn’t start using again meth until just recently I lost my job things got tough ended up selling most my stuff just to make ends meet I no longer had nor could I find the connections I used to have for my opiates making meth the next runner-up cheap cost effective and extremely powerful almost to powerful in most cases. My question is to you how come with a growing meth tolerance I still have the effects of opium even after six or seven months of not doing them when I’m high on meth I sometimes have intense cravings for opium or opiates. opiates but when I was on opiates never once did I want to smoke or snort or eat methamphetamine. I understand that my DOC was and probably will be the rest of my life due to long-term exposure and abuse to opiates. Are there some addictions that hold on to the soul or the very essence spirituality sensuality and the way he or she looks at life through their own perspective what is supposed to be the world’s most destructive drug it’s supposed to be methamphetamine which buy All rights it has destroyed families and destroyed lives and has quite a rap sheet and reputation. But to be fair that title needs updated opiates opium and its evil cousin heroin is are the most dangerous drugs on the planet. I understand scientifically how both drugs affect the brain raising and lowering particular chemicals. Is there any scientific or psychological knowledge that we know of different types of addictions how can one can crave or having intense feeling to use a drug that you are no longer taking while you’re supposedly using hey way stronger as far as danger and strength of drug is concerned on a scale of a 1 to 10 ratio scale the 10 being methamphetamine and the 1 being opiates Vicodin, Percocet Etc.

DONALD

1:19 am August 20th, 2018

With the topic of medicnally useing methamphetamine for narcolepsy, attention deficit and hyperactivity. Can someone please explain how the Government even allows such nonsense in a pill to even be sold or taxed ?

T

9:56 am November 24th, 2018

I just smoked a half gram of meth and it’s my second time smoking will I die

I have smoked very very heavily every day for about 2-3 years now and I slowed down about a month ag...

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